Microsoft unveils Windows 8.1 with Bing for lower cost devices

Microsoft has unveiled Windows 8.1 with Bing, which will only be available preloaded on devices from hardware partners. Microsoft wants to help ensure hardware partners are able to build innovative, differentiated, and competitive devices on the Windows platform.

We first learned about Windows 8.1 with Bing back in March of this year. It is basically a variant of Windows 8.1 that helps OEMs add Windows to low cost devices, at the cost of making Bing the default search engine.

“Windows 8.1 with Bing provides all the same great experiences that Windows 8.1 offers with the Windows 8.1 Update, and comes with Bing as the default search engine within Internet Explorer. And of course customers will be able to change that setting through the Internet Explorer menu, providing them with control over search engine settings,” Microsoft stated in an official blog post.

Some of these devices running Windows 8.1 with Bing will also come with Office or a one year subscription to Office 365. Microsoft wants to offer Windows 8.1 and Office at a really affordable price. Microsoft recently revealed that Windows would be available for free to hardware partners for Windows Phones and tablets smaller than 9-inches in screen size.

Computex in Taipei is almost upon us and expect to see devices running Windows 8.1 with Bing.